The Weekly Winston: Post-Election Edition

Some of Churchill’s most famous remarks involved election campaigns and their aftermath, especially losing campaigns. The most often recalled were his comment after the 1945 landslide loss when Clementine said that perhaps it was a blessing in disguise, to which Winston replied that if so, it was certainly very well disguised. Or: “In war you can only be killed once, but in politics many times.”

But in light of this week’s election result, there are a few others that appear on point:

On questions of economic law it does not matter at all what the electors think or vote or say. The economic laws proceed. (1929)

“All men are created equal,” says the American Declaration of Independence. “All man shall be kept equal,” say the British Socialist Party.

It is an error to believe that the world began when any particular party or statesman got into office. It has all been going on quite a long time. . .

Nothing would be more dangerous than for people to feel cheated because they had been led to expect attractive schemes which turn out to be economically impossible.